Is your paperwork in compliance? GINA recordkeeping obligations

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has issued final regulations regarding record keeping requirements under the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) to be effective April 3, 2012. Under the new record keeping requirements, GINA documents are to be retained in the same manner that currently applies documentation relating to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act (Title VII) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

Need a record retention refresher?

1. All Personnel and Employment Records made or used (including, but not limited to, requests for reasonable accommodation, application forms submitted by applicants, and records dealing with hiring, promotion, demotion, transfer, lay-off or termination, rates of pay, compensation, tenure, selection for training or apprenticeship, or other terms of employment) must be preserved for the following periods:
   1. Private employers must retain such records for one year from the date of making the record or the personnel action involved, whichever occurs later, but in the case of involuntary termination of an employee, they must retain the terminated employee’s personnel or employment records for one year from the date of termination.
   2. Educational Institutions and State and Local Governments must retain such records for two years from the date of the making of the record or the personnel action involved, whichever occurs later, but in the case of involuntary termination of an employee, they must retain the terminated employee’s personnel or employment records for two years from the date of termination.
2. Other Records must be retained for the following periods:
   1. Labor Unions which are “referral unions” must retain all membership and referral records (including applications for same) for a period of one year from the date of making the record.
   2. Apprenticeship Committees that control apprenticeship programs must retain all apprenticeship records, including, but not necessarily limited to, requests for reasonable accommodation, test papers completed by applicants, and records of interviews, for a period of two years from the date of making of the record.
3. Records Relating to a Charge of Discrimination
   
   Where a charge of discrimination has been filed under Title VII, the ADA, or GINA, or where a civil action has been brought by the Commission or the Attorney General, the respondent private employer, state or local government employer, educational institution employer, labor union, or apprenticeship committee must retain all records related to the charge or action until final disposition of the charge or action. The date of final disposition means the date of expiration of the statutory period within which the aggrieved person may bring an action in a U.S. District Court or, where such an action has been brought, the date on which such litigation is terminated.

What is GINA again?

GINA protects job applicants, current and former employees, labor union members, apprentices, and trainees from discrimination based upon genetic information. GINA applies to all employers with 15 or more employees, employment agencies, labor unions, joint labor-management training programs, and federal sector employers.

For more information about GINA compliance see http://www.eeoc.gov/laws/types/genetic.cfm orcontact the attorneys at Moody & Warner, PC.